Human Relations special issue call for papers

Constructing identity in organizations

**with apologies for cross posting**

The editors of Human Relations intend to publish a special issue of the journal on the subject of Constructing identity in organizations

Guest editors: Tom Keenoy, University of Leicester, Sierk Ybema, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Cliff Oswick, University of Leicester, Ida Sabelis, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Nick Ellis, University of Leicester and Armin Beverungen, University of Leicester.

The notion of 'identity' may be regarded as a bridging concept between the individual and society. Its potential mediating quality lies in its dual character – it refracts both the self and social structure. And, through this dialectical process, social actors – individuals, groups, categories and associations – may develop a sense of self (and of others) in interac­tion with the social environ­ment. Processes of identity formation are both reflexive and complex; they involve the naming, labelling, classifying and associating of both symbolic artefacts and social actors. It appears to be a dialogical process of social definition (and re-definition) through doctrinal discourses and/or the creation of shared beliefs through 'symbolic violence' and self-definition (e.g. via role embracing, emotional distancing, position taking, meaning making or rule breaking). Identity can thus be conceptualised as a complex, multifaceted, transient construct that is negotia­ted (and re-negotiated) in the dynamic interplay between internal strivings and external prescriptions, between self-presentation and labelling by others, between achievement and ascription, and between regulation and resistance. Identity and identities appear to be constructed somewhe­re 'in between' the commu­nicator(s) and their audience(s).

Unfortunately, this duality and complexity is often lost in pre-emptive accounts of social identifi­cation processes in organizations which focus on either internal or external definitions of the self, on the impact of macro discourses and institutions, on social actors accommodating to particular  'subject positions' or on the subjects' own strategies of 'self'-construc­tion. In consequence, identity does not fully live up to its promise as a mediating concept. However, by adopting a focus on varieties of organizational discourse – for example, professional rhetorics, management discourses, everyday talk or shopfloor narratives – we may have access to a more up-close and in-depth view of the intricacies which inform the processes of identity construction in organizational settings.

We invite conceptual contributions and papers that draw on in-depth empirical research which explores the ways in which organizational actors discursively construct and negotiate personal, professional or organizational identities. In particular, we invite papers that address alternative or frame-breaking constructions of identity and focus on the less obvious aspects of organizing – such as ideology, alterity, exclusion or taboos – and explore the identifications involved in alternative forms of organizing. In this respect, we would welcome papers with an idiosyncratic approach to the potential for multiple, contested, alternative, co-existing and unorthodox readings of the discursive processes implicated in creating and re-creating social identification.

The deadline for submissions is 15 June 2007. The special issue is intended for publication in the second half of 2008.

For the full call for papers, please visit the Human Relations website:

http://www.tavinstitute.org/humanrelations/special_issues/constructing_identity.html

About Human Relations - Now in it's 60^th year!

Human Relations is a key forum for innovative ideas in the social sciences and is one of the world's leading journals for the analysis of work, organizations and management. It has stimulated advances in research and practice for over half a century, pioneering publication of multidisciplinary research in the fields of work and organizational relations. Human Relations has had a long tradition of bringing social science disciplines together in order to understand the character and complexity of human problems. We publish incisive investigations from an international network of leading scholars in management, psychology, sociology, politics, anthropology and economics.  Further information is available at:

http://humanrelationsjournal.org